DoubleClick to buy Real Media

BambiFrancisco

NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Online ad-serving firm DoubleClick is in talks to buy rival Real Media, according to a source familiar with the negotiations.

DoubleClick
DCLK
with a market value of $730 million and $800 million in cash, could make an announcement as early as Tuesday, this person said.

Under the plan envisioned by the parties, DoubleClick would buy Real Media from parent firm PubliGroupe, the Swiss advertising giant, giving it ownership of Real Media's Open AdStream technology. The technology rivals DoubleClick's DART system, which Web publishers use to put ads on their sites.

Speculation about a merger had been building for some time. But the buzz picked up last month, when PubliGroupe said its online operations adversely affected its results.

New York-based Real Media has 400 employees and more than 850 customers. Some Real Media insiders are likely to view DoubleClick, also headquartered in New York, as their archrival.

Representatives for Real Media weren't available to comment.

Indeed, Real Media has been successful in taking away business from its competitors. And according to some customers, Open AdStream has better pricing structures than DoubleClick.

Web content companies also like Real Media's privacy policy, under which online publishers exclusively own the audience data generated on their site. DoubleClick officials declined to comment.

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